Named after a local firefighter who died in the line of duty, James C. Nelson Park is a cherished space for residents of Sterling Heights. The 65-acre park has a rentable pavilion, two playgrounds, a sand volleyball court, trails through the woods, and "just a general great place for gathering and green space," says Parks and Recreation director Kyle Langlois. 

The City had made several recreational improvements to the park in the 2010s. More ideas sprung up from the City's Visioning 2030 and Visioning 2040 processes, which focused on expanding access to high-quality public amenities and creating welcoming spaces for residents. With ARPA dollars in hand, "we were looking for some input from the community about what we would do with those [funds]," says Langlois. "What were projects that the community wanted to see?" 

"One of those projects that rose to the top was a community garden." 

These days, a redeveloped acre of Nelson Park (previously a lightly used soccer field) boasts not only a community garden, but also a butterfly conservatory, a micro-forest, and functional public art.  Completed in 2025, "Homegrown in Nelson Park" is the City of Sterling Heights' entry for the 2026 Community Excellence Award. 

The City selected the park as the site of the new development because it already had the necessary infrastructure in place: parking, restrooms, water service. Instead of concentrating investment in the center of Sterling Heights, "we wanted to provide a really unique amenity in the southwest section of the city," says Langlois. 

Officials toured several other community gardens in the Metro Detroit area, and "we basically took the best of all of those." The City quickly concluded that a community garden alone would not meet their goals. "We didn't want it to just be a garden space where people could grow things," he adds. "That doesn't move the needle for 135,000 residents that don't have a garden bed." 

Instead, the focus became creating a space that would offer educational opportunities, environmental benefits, and recreational experiences for visitors—whether or not they rented a garden plot. "It was important for us to make sure it was a gathering space that people could utilize, no matter what," says Langlois. 

Ideas for the butterfly conservatory and micro-forest came as the City was exploring how to incorporate sustainability action into the plan. The conservatory houses native plants and butterflies, functioning as both an attraction and an educational space where visitors can learn about pollinators and the local ecosystem. It also supports programming led by the City's Nature Center staff, which includes guided tours and educational activities. 

"We obtain butterflies in their chrysalis form and help them to ultimately go through the process of becoming a butterfly," says Langlois. "Then, they live out their days fluttering around in the conservatory." 

Nelson Park's new micro-forest is intended to recreate a natural forest ecosystem from the ground up. The project includes seeds, understory vegetation, native flowers, shrubs, and trees that will develop over time into a more complex ecosystem. Areas that had had issues with standing water and mosquitos were converted into native planting zones, eliminating the need to spray with harsh chemicals. 

The micro-forest concept required some explanation for visitors. While newly planted saplings may not immediately look like a forest, educational signage nearby helps residents understand the long-term vision. 

Another unique new feature: Seating created from upcycled wind turbine blades. "We bought them primed and ready, and then did a call for artist submissions through our Arts Commission," says Community Relations Director Melanie Davis. The City ultimately selected wildlife artist and muralist Brooklyn Lamb. 

A covered swing, painted inside and out with flowers on a black background, has become one of the most popular features in the park. "I have yet to be in the park where there wasn't somebody sitting on that swing," says Davis. 

Next to the conservatory and the seating is the community garden itself, which has over 100 raised and ground-level ADA accessible beds, rentable through the City. A partnership with Rochester Hills-based Dutton Farm, sponsored by Genisys Credit Union, teaches people with developmental disabilities life skills and how to grow their own produce. 

There's a children's garden, which offers educational programming for kids. It's also where another bit of local charm can be found. "We had a raised bed in the children's garden where we wanted it to be more whimsical for little kids," says Davis. "They wanted to call it the 'deep-dish pizza garden.' All of the plants in it are things that you would put on a deep-dish pizza—tomatoes, peppers, garlic, that kind of stuff."  

And so, the raised bed now is painted with images of eggplants, basil, tomatoes, mushrooms, and a Detroit-style square pizza, with lettering that reads, "Welcome to Sterling Heights Deep Dish." 

"Everybody loves pizza, generally speaking," adds Langlois.  

Construction on the new features of Nelson Park began in late summer of 2024, which then opened in April 2025. "The feedback we've gotten has been overwhelmingly positive," says Davis.  "We're always talking about third spaces and how communities really lack them these days. It's nice when you can create that—just a free space where people can commune." 

"From that moment when we were going to go after a community garden, we were going to do it the Sterling Heights way," adds Langlois. "It was going to be something that would be a pride point in the community." 

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Emily Pinsuwan

Emily is the League’s full-time Content Writer, composing emails, articles, blog posts, and press releases. If you need words, she has many. Prior to becoming a word person, she was a restaurant person, handling catering, event management, and marketing; prior still, she was a teaching person, at a private boarding school in Massachusetts. Having earned a master’s degree in Classics from the University of Georgia, Emily is confident that she is the only League employee fluent in Latin. She also enjoys cooking, stand-up comedy, and is an avid gamer, having achieved level 40 on her Steam profile.